Lost in Stockholm

Now that it is the end of summer, people are returning back to work and also applying for jobs again. Despite the recession, many companies are hiring, especially anything IT related. And many of these companies are welcoming to foreigners.

I was surfing through the official job site in Sweden, Arbetsförmedlingen, that is branch responsible to get unemployed people employed, foreigners into the workforce, and provide tips and information. What I noticed is a lot of the information and preparation for a job interview in Sweden is similar to the US (and I presume UK).

In my previous post about job interviews, I discussed the difference between US and Sweden are ’situation’ problem questions rarely arise in Swedish interviews. As I’ve experienced several job interviews here, that seems to be the case.

A job interview in Sweden is more about exploring your personality, qualities, and how well you work with others. You won’t be berated with logic questions but you still need to know about the company and WHY you want the job.

Before the Interview

Prepare for the interview

• Find out as much as you can about the company.
• Think about what you want out of the job and interview.
• Make a list of questions you may receive and prepare responses. This is best to do! You can use these for any interview.
• Write down any questions you would ask.
• Think through how you want the employer to find you (behavior, dress).
• Keep the employer’s phone number on hand so you can call if anything happens.
• Agree with the interviewer’s time. Don’t make them jump through hoops to find a time that suits you.

What to Bring

• Copies of your application documents, certificates and testimonials
• Any work samples
• Planning calendar, notepad and pen
• List of own prepared questions and notes about the company and its products and services

At the Interview

Questions you will receive

• Tell us about yourself – Place emphasis on the last few years and do not talk too long.
• Why have you applied for this job? – Employers want to know how interested you are to work and how much you know about the company. Describe what interests you at work and pick up your work experience, education and characteristics.
• What do you know about us? – Emphasize what is most important based on what you found out about it. Be brief.
• Why did you move to Sweden?
• Do you know Swedish?
• Is it easy to learn new things?
• Can you take criticism?
• Can you solve problems?
• Can you give some examples of problems you have solved?
• What are you most proud of?
• Can you tell us of something really good that you made?
• Where do you see yourself in five years?
• How do you find a good colleague to be?
• Can you tell us about any mistakes you made and what you learned from it?
• How would your friends describe you?
• How would your boss describe you?
• How does your group describe you?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses? – Always asked
• What makes you happy at work?
• How do you handle stress and time pressure?
• Why should we hire you? – Always asked

Tip: Prepare answers to ALL these questions. This way you have several hours at home to peacefully ponder them and have great responses.

When you Speak

• Be honest – tell the truth.
• Never criticize a former boss or employer.
• Speak well of former colleagues, bosses, customers, businesses and products.
• Remember that your body language means a lot – a time for you, have energy in your movements and a positive attitude.
• Keep eye contact.
• Never show that you are in desperate need of a job.
• Never talk about your private problems.
• Do not reply to a question if you have not understood it correctly – ask for an explanation.
• Find out the next step in the recruitment process before you proceed.
• End your interview with a smile, a thank you and a firm handshake.

After the Interview

• Send a thank you letter by email or mail (depending on your industry)
• Don’t berate them with calls or emails about the job unless they did not get back to you in the appropriate time.
• Keep your references on hand. The employer may want to call them.

And if this interview doesn’t work out, then the next interview will. Be positive and interested!

Finding an apartment in Stockholm is like looking for polar bears on the streets. It is hard, it is aggravating, and it is downright elusive to find. Sometimes it takes days and sometimes months to find an apartment in the city of no hope.

This is part 42 of the living in Sweden series. Apartment hunting never ends, it’s always hiding in the shadows.
Living in Sweden: Finding a Job
Job Posting in Sweden
Living in Sweden: Swedish CVs and Job Interviews
Living in Sweden: Finding an Apartment: Part 1
Living in Sweden: English Bookstores
Learn Swedish: Don’t Sätt på en Skygg Lapp

Sweden’s welfare system on first hand apartments has led to a distorted housing market. If the real estate market did not already have asymmetric advantage in knowledge, the welfare based/rent controlled model adds more corruption and consequences to society at large.

Let’s look at it this way. Residential infrastructure is the lowest in Sweden (3% of the GDP) than any other OECD country (6% of the GDP). Add to that, overvaluation of Stockholm housing prices, uncompetitiveness in the market, high barriers to entry in construction, heavy taxations, disincentives to open up land, and you can see the whole housing system is a mess.

And regarding the rental queue system in Sweden, it’s worse. “Eight percent of the Swedish population is queuing for a new apartment, with an average waiting time of 10 years.” There’s little hope, you or I as immigrants will ever have a shot at a reasonable apartment in the major cities (Stockholm, Göteborg, Malmö).

How do you go about finding an apartment in Sweden then? Vigilance, determination, and the knowledge that everyone and anyone can/will screw you over. The housing market in Sweden is like legal prostitution. It exists out of a necessary evil, even though no one knows how to regulate the market to prevent corruption, abuse, and distortion.

How to find an apartment in the Swedish major cities:
1. Write an introduction letter (in Swedish) about yourself. Even if your Swedish is poor or you are very new to the country, write that your Swedish is poor. What you need to say in your letter: you found the apartment via Xxx site, you have a job, your job is in xxx industry, you don’t smoke, your partner is XXX and he/she works in xxx industry.
2. Search blocket.se several times a day for a new apartment. Email immediately.
3. If you have 700SEK to spare, get a bostaddirekt.com account. I hate those people but they have “slightly” better apartments (though I met some seriously crazy owners on there too). Better yet, if you want to share your BostadDirekt access code or want to split the cost with some, post on the BostadDirekt Free Access page.
4. Call apartments that sound most interesting to you.
5. Get your paperwork together: Reference letter from last landlord, personbevis, arbetsbevis (that you actually work and earn from a company), and other information asked about you. This information is required for the Coop board to sign.
6. Once you make it through the weeding with an owner, you will submit your application to the board. There is now a 70% chance you will get this apartment. DO NOT STOP looking for other apartments.
7. Find at least one more apartment and apply to the board there. In case you are denied from the board, you have a backup. And you haven’t lost time looking for a place either.
8. Pray pray pray.
9. Sign the lease. Take a Swedish person to read over the lease and ask any unfinished questions.
10. In peace hopefully, move in.

Signs of under the table and corrupt apartment owning:

• The landlord wants you to pay in cash
• You write one amount on the contract, yet pay another amount. This is illegal. You can sue the owner for the amount because he/she has a firsthand apartment where there is rent ceiling for secondhand renting. Obviously, this gets out of control in Stockholm since few people possess the common sense and moral values to obey Swedish law.
• Scammers want you to pay in advance a deposit to see the apartment. DO NOT!!!!
• You are unsure if the coop board approved you. Concerned? Do NOT sign until you meet the board.
• Trust your instincts. Most rentors are out to make extra money and circumvent the law. Don’t be a victim to greedy bastards.
• You are not allowed to put your name on the door. Again, this is a sign that the owner never received approval to rent.

Apartment hunting in Stockholm sucks (we’re on day 64 of apartment hunting). It’s a vicious cycle which has no hope of ending soon. The government turns a blind eye at corruption while people participate in a black market. Information is asymmetric for foreigners; you don’t know the law, the owner can trick you.

Most of all, stay positive.  You will get an apartment.  Soon.  One day.

This is part four of the Living in Sweden series. Here are the others for you to catch up on:
Find a Job in Sweden
Going for a Swedish Interview
Find an Apartment in Sweden

English books are expensive in Sweden. There’s also a limited collection of them at most bookstores so after a while you go crazy. But I discovered there are quite a few places to buy books in English in Stockholm at reasonable prices.

Secondhand stores – I’m normally not a fan of secondhand bookstores, but these stores have a hidden treasure of engelska bok, english books. Prices range from 10kr to 50kr and the biggest, most expensive ones at 100kr. Basically $14 tops for a book, great deal!

Small bookshops – Akademibokhandeln is very expensive for English books unless they have a sale or a special discount. I tend to avoid the store usually. I also avoid The English Bookstore in Medborgaplatsen for the same reason. It still leaves a few places to buy bookstores in Stockholm that are new book at cheap prices.

HEDENGRENS BOKHANDEL – Located in Sturegallerian, the mall in Ostermalm. If you go downstairs in the bookstore, there’s a small section up front with special discounted books. Plus there’s a section towards the back of the store with a large selection of English books in different categories. Some of them are pricey but there are always cheap books to be found.

Rönells Antikvariat – Birger Jarlsgatan 32 – Mostly antique and older books in Swedish and other Nordic languages, there’s a couple shelves of good english books for 10kr or 20kr. I usually see romance or crime thrillers, but it’s worth a peak especially if you are at the bookstore above.

This Post is part three in the Living in Sweden series. Need to catch up? Here are the others:
Find a Job in Sweden
Going for a Swedish Interview
Finding an apartment in Sweden sucks. Finding an apartment in Stockholm, sucks beyond recognition. Because in Sweden they have a nonsensical system where people go crazy to get a rental contract (yes just a lease) and once they get one, most try to die with it.

It’s a bad system, unlike the US, where you just rent directly from the owner of the building for a year or two and then move on. In Sweden as a foreigner you have to two options: 1) sublet from someone else (also known as second hand contract); 2) or buy an apartment. Choice two is rather expensive and futile if you don’t indeed on staying in Sweden for a while. Which leaves you with the other, tedious choice of getting a second hand apartment. What? But you want a first hand lease? Forget it. The wait time in Stockholm is well over ten years, you’ll most likely be dead or had 10 babies before a first hand contract comes up. And besides, you have to be Swedish or with a Swedish residence permit to get on the list.

So again, if you are foreign, you are left to little choice. I found my first apartment via the website Bostad Direkt. Now I’m not going to give you their website address, because well they suck. First you pay 700kr just to see the list and the people who run that site are well, greedy bastards. The customer service reps at Bostad Direkt do not answer emails, phone calls, and most of the time, their office is “closed.” And of course you pay 700kr to get amazing service like that. However, you do get access to a list of apartments available and since people don’t want to spend 700kr to see a list of apartments, the number of people searching on that site is less than others.

BUT, you will pay a lot. Most of the apartments are super high priced, you get ripped off again. My first apartment was over 13000kr per month, plus I got to pay the awesome 700kr to Bostad Direkt. Thanks to Lisa Söderlindh, I was overcharged while she snidely circumvented Swedish rent laws to pocket 8000kr in profit every month. (Plus she’s done journalist work for non profits, the irony!) Obviously, the Swedish rental system works.

Now the remaining choices are in Swedish and a few newspapers. Prepare yourself for the following things when looking for an apartment in Sweden, especially Stockholm:
1) Everyone lies. The Swedish Rental market is about as black as the black abyss of the sea. No one, mainly people you will be renting from, will tell you the truth.

• Make sure that when you rent secondhand (ie. andrahand), that the coop board of the building has approved and signed off on it. If they have not, you are not legally living there.
• Also make sure to have it writing, what the rent will be and stick to it. Here’s the fun part. Swedish law has a maximum markup cap on apartments. Now see, my lovely friend Lisa Soderlindh rented her apartment for just under 5000kr per month. She rented it to me for 13000kr per month. Sounds insane? It is. She’s only allowed to give around a 15% plus maybe a little more since the place was furnished. To make it more fun, she wrote on the contract that I would pay 5000kr. See? Liars, since I had to pay 13000kr. You could end up in the situation too, it’s quite normal. But if you get tired of it, stop paying the markup and just pay the price written into the contract. These firsthand renters don’t have much defense if they complained. Hellow tax evasion and rental violations otherwise.
• Right, and the buying apartment industry is also opaque. Because the Swedish governement doesn’t give a rat’s ass about honor and integrity in the rental market, it’s basically a free for all. Just like in any other country, the rental markets are asymmetrically controlled by the rentors or sellers. It is the same in Sweden, except that no one thinks it’s a problem the market is completely perverted.

2.  It takes time to find an apartment. Be prepared it could take a good month to get an apartment.  If you have friends, send out your feelers and see if someone has a place available.  Just know that getting an apartment is not an easy process.

3.  Check the listings on websites everyday. Listings go fast, dozens of people call minutes after a listing posts.  Be diligent and check the bostads sites at least twice a day.

4.  Bring a Swedish friend when you sign a contract. They can help make sure that the contract covers everything and that the right people sign it (rentor and coop board).

Now that you are terrified of getting a place, here’s a list of sites that list places to rent.

AndraHand.se – http://www.andrahand.se/

AndraHandsGuiden.se – http://www.andrahandsguiden.com/

The Local – thelocal.se

Blocket – http://www.blocket.se – Like Craigslist but for the Swedish market.

Have pointers on finding a place in Sweden?  Share your thoughts so none of us foreigners are left to the sharks in the housing market.

This post is part two in the Living in Sweden Series.  In the first post, we discussed how to find a job in Sweden.  Now, once you found a job, you need to create a polished resume and prepare for potential interviews in Sweden.

A CV, curriculum vitae, is a longer form of a resume.  If you are from the US, you should revamp your resume to include a few more details that should be on a CV in Sweden.  From the Arbetsförmedlingen guidebook on finding a job, this is what you should have on your CV.

• Studies/training
• Job experience placements
• Training courses
• Other information: travel, computer skills, language competencies, special achievements, and community organizations
• Work experience
• Personal: Interests and hobbies
• References: 1-2 professional references and maybe 1 personal reference (not your mom or dad!) that can vouch for your personality, work ethic, and achievements for a long period of time.

Made it this far? When you apply for a job in Sweden, just as in most countries, you should also include a cover letter stating why you want the job.  Write what experience you have that can complement the job as well as what makes you different, i.e. a stellar candidate, from other applicants.  Most employers are okay if you write the CV and cover letter in English, though if you have the knowledge (don’t fake it) do write in Swedish.

The Swedish Job Interview:
First off, if you get your foot in the door with an interivew, more than half the battle is won.  A job interview, in Sweden or anywhere else in the world, is your  opportunity to prove that you are the best person ever for the job.  Period.  You are awesome, you get the job.

Prepare for the interview:

• Read up on the company. – Especially if this is a big company, know about their history, what revolutionary things they are doing, their balance sheet (if going into finance/accounting).
• Find out about recent news about the company. – If you do not understand Swedish, then enlist your friends to find recent articles about the potential company.   For example, if Saab is announcing a big job cut, you can ask why are they still hiring.
• Read industry related blogs/sites. - Maybe going in marketing?  Then read blogs (you should already be doing so, otherwise why are you applying for this job) and industry news.  When you are at the interview, you can then say “I keep with industry related activities by reading X, Y and Z blogs.  I also found one Swedish blog that is great as well, and I am always looking for more.”
• Find out who is interviewing you and what their title is.

What to take to an interview:
Because you are a foreigner, I would carry additional paperwork to satisfy any questions the interviewer may have.  You probably won’t need it, but you never know and do not want to slow down the interview because you left papers at home.

• Copy of your diploma
• CV and cover letter (if you wrote a cover letter)
• Transcript of grades – good if you are applying to a fairly academic or research oriented position (like quantitative math analyst at a financial firm)
• References – At least two people that can vouch for you (and the ones listed on your CV is preferredu).  Have their phone numbers and emails on hand to give to the interviewer.

I have had several interviews in Sweden. Preparing for a job interview in Sweden or anywhere else is a daunting task, especially if you know nothing about the culture.  Swedish job interviews tend to be more personal than American interviews and more subjective based. They also don’t spend as much time giving you lots of “situations” or number crunching exercises.  Here are few questions I remember from my interviews and some from the guidebook.

Potential questions at a Swedish Interview:

• Why did you move to Sweden? What interests you about Sweden?
• Do you intend on living in Sweden for an extended period of time?
• Do you speak Swedish? Are you willing to learn? – If you happen to know some Swedish, speak it.
• Tell me about yourself. Give a 2 minute spiel about coming to Sweden, what your education is, and what is your experience.
• Why are you good for this job?
• Can you accept criticism?
• Can you solve problems?
• Can you give examples of problems you have solved?
• Is there anything in particular that you are proud of?
• Can you tell us about something you have achieved?
• What will you be doing in 5 years from now?
• How would you describe a good colleague?
• Can you tell us about a mistake that you’ve made, and what you learned from the experience?
• How would your friends describe you?
• How would your manager describe you?
• How do you function in a group?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• What gives you job satisfaction?
• Why should we employ you?

If you made it this far, be sure to thank the interviewer and ask what the next step is. Send a thank you letter as well.  If you applying for a job at a traditional Swedish company, then mail one to the interviewer.  If you are applying to a high tech, very internet based company, an email will suffice.  If you do not hear anything in one week, send a reminder and find out how the interview selection is going.  Ask if there is any paperwork that you could provide to help them.

I also would tell my future employer that I must have a Swedish work visa in order to work in Sweden.  , that my future employer must file all the necessary paperwork and pay the fees.  I had one employer give me a job offer on condition that I do all the paperwork.  No thanks, you can’t do that.   Job offers have to be approved by a union board, so going your own way is a very very long and tough road.  If your employer is not willing to help you with a visa, it is a sign that they may not help you with many other things at the company.

Of course, be enthusiastic and excited to work in Sweden and work for a Swedish company.  Be relaxed and know your stuff and you will be okay.

Good luck with your job interviews in Sweden!

The first step to moving to Sweden is to find a job. Without a job, you are pretty much SOL in terms of living in the country. There are a few exceptions to living in Sweden without finding a job. Here are the exceptions:
Student in Sweden – Exchange students, post secondary education, graduate students. Link here.
Asylum Seeker to Sweden – Obviously very tight regulations here.  If you are not from a war torn country, most likely you will not be approved as a refugee in Sweden. See more here.
Researcher visiting Sweden – Here’s information directly from Migrationsverket: Visiting researchers do not need a work permit but may only work as visiting researchers with the research organization (for example, university, institute or business) that has employed the researcher. The research organization must be approved by the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education. Visiting researchers who will work in Sweden for a period exceeding three months must have a residence permit.”  And for more information, you can read here.
Performing Artists in Sweden – Includes singers, musicians, dancers and circus artists, etc.  Those accompanying the artist as technicians, road managers, etc, also come into this category and must therefore have permits as well.  There are quite a few exceptions so be sure to read information page about it.
Au pair in Sweden – Fairly simple as the program is similar to other countries.  Two key notes: the Philippines does NOT allow for au pairs to any European country and you should between 18-30 years of age in order to apply as an au pair in Sweden. For more info, go here.

Employee seeking in Sweden:

If you don’t fall into any of the categories above, then go find a job, now. Yes, now!  People ask me if they should look for a job when they intend to work in three months time, that’s the point, you need to prepare to find a job now.  When I searched for a job almost two years ago, the online resources were scarce.  Today, you have the advantage of a lot of resources and helpful advice.  The merger between Arbetsförmedlingen and Migrationsverket has also reduced the paperwork and confusion when applying for a work permit.  Start with the find a job in Sweden resource from Arbetsförmedlingen; they have some great bits and I’ve summarized the most important below.  Read the full guide here.

Education:
Have it; have a good secondary education. Swedes themselves may not care about the level of education you have, but companies who are hiring foreigners do.  I know I got my foot in the door at interviews because of the university I went to and the experience I had there (btw, I only hold a BA).  If you are close to obtaining your degree, please complete it before coming to Sweden, it is definitely an intangible benefit.   If you do not hold a degree, have a strong CV documenting your experience and strengths in work.   You can check out the other page on job interviews and CVs in Sweden.

Current industries looking for employees:

• University-trained healthcare professionals
• Skilled tradespeople and engineering graduates in the industrial sector
• Skilled tradespeople and engineers in the building sector
• Specially trained chefs (especially in Stockholm and tourist destinations)
• Qualified sales representatives
• Accountants
• Drivers and motor mechanics
• Preschool teachers and schoolteachers
• Information technology graduates

If your profession does not fall into one of these categories, don’t fret, you still have a great chance of coming to Sweden.  Just know that pool of applicants will be tighter.

Places to find open job opportunities in Sweden:
http://www.workey.se – A large database of jobs.
http://www.academicwork.se – Great place to post your CV if you are a new graduate or still a university student.
http://www.jobsinstockholm.com – It has jobs in Stockholm as well as jobs all over Sweden.
http://www.arbetsformedlingen.se -  The Swedish umeployment board, a great place to look for postings.
http://www.monster.se –  The Monster in the Swedish version.
http://www.xpats.nu -  Small site that discusses moving to Sweden and has a jobs board.
http://www.manpower.se –
http://metrojobb.se – One of the major daily newspapers in Sweden.
http://www.stepstone.se — StepStone
http://www.dn.se/ekonomi/sokjobb — Job classifieds from Dagens Nyheter, another major Swedish newspaper (I think one of the best)
http://eures.europa.eu – A database for job applicants in all of Europe.

http://www.thelocal.se -  The English Newspaper for Sweden.  The quality of writing is mediocre at best, but they have a pretty extensive job listing.

Sweden Networking Sites:
http://www.swedenintouch.se – A forum from the makers of Sweden.se.
http://www.siliconvikings.com – For people who lived in the Bay Area or do business with the Bay Area (that’s silicon valley in San Francisco).

I hope this helps you all out in the search for a job.  If you have questions or suggestions, definitely post them before.  People are always looking for job opportunities in Sweden, we can all use a little help.

Inspired by my good friend Hairy Swede of Welcome to Sweden, I decided to write a moving and living in Sweden series.   My tale is about finding a job, finding a place, getting a work visa on my own.   I did not have the luxury of EU or Swedish citizenship or a Swedish boyfriend to give me easy entry into Sweden.   Instead, I arrived as a well educated, skills based employee in Sweden.   And yes, it is possible to find a job in Stockholm.   The road is not easy; it is as Robert Frost put it, a road much less traveled.   Below is the list of articles I will post over the next couple months.  The links are not live yet, but as each article posts, I will highlight the links here.

Living in Sweden: Finding a Job
Living in Sweden: Writing a CV and Going for a Job Interview
Find an Apartment in Sweden
Living in Sweden: English Bookstores
Living in Sweden: What to take to Sweden
Living in Sweden: Dress Like a Swede
Living in Sweden: Swedish Employment Benefits
Living in Sweden: Swedish Holidays or Red Days
Living in Sweden: Learning the Swedish Language

Robert Frost: The Road Not Taken (1915)
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I–
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.